Solid state lighting arrays are used for a number of lighting applications. For example, solid state lighting panels including arrays of solid state lighting devices have been used as direct illumination sources, for example, in architectural and/or accent lighting. A solid state lighting device may include, for example, a packaged light emitting device including one or more light emitting diodes (LEDs). Inorganic LEDs typically include semiconductor layers forming p-n junctions. Organic LEDs (OLEDs), which include organic light emission layers, are another type of solid state light emitting device. Typically, a solid state light emitting device generates light through the recombination of electronic carriers, i.e. electrons and holes, in a light emitting layer or region.
Solid state lighting panels are commonly used as backlights for small liquid crystal display (LCD) display screens, such as LCD display screens used in portable electronic devices. In addition, there has been increased interest in the use of solid state lighting panels as backlights for larger displays, such as LCD television displays.
For smaller LCD screens, backlight assemblies typically employ white LED lighting devices that include a blue-emitting LED coated with a wavelength conversion phosphor that converts some of the blue light emitted by the LED into yellow light. The resulting light, which is a combination of blue light and yellow light, may appear white to an observer. However, while light generated by such an arrangement may appear white, objects illuminated by such light may not appear to have a natural coloring, because of the limited spectrum of the light. For example, because the light may have little energy in the red portion of the visible spectrum, red colors in an object may not be illuminated well by such light. As a result, the object may appear to have an unnatural coloring when viewed under such a light source.
The color rendering index of a light source is an objective measure of the ability of the light generated by the source to accurately illuminate a broad range of colors. The color rendering index ranges from essentially zero for monochromatic sources to nearly 100 for incandescent sources. Light generated from a phosphor-based solid state light source may have a relatively low color rendering index.
For large-scale illumination applications, it is often desirable to provide a lighting source that generates a white light having a high color rendering index, so that objects illuminated by the lighting panel may appear more natural. Similarly, for display backlight applications, it may be desirable to provide a backlight source that permits the display to have a large range of displayable colors (color gamut). Accordingly, such lighting sources may typically include an array of solid state lighting devices including red, green and blue light emitting devices. When red, green and blue light emitting devices are energized simultaneously, the resulting combined light may appear white, or nearly white, depending on the relative intensities of the red, green and blue sources, which may provide a high color rendering index. There are many different hues of light that may be considered “white.” For example, some “white” light, such as light generated by sodium vapor lighting devices, may appear yellowish in color, while other “white” light, such as light generated by some fluorescent lighting devices, may appear more bluish in color. Similarly, a display may generate a large range of colors by altering the relative intensities of the red, green and blue light sources of a backlight unit.
For larger display and/or illumination applications, multiple solid state lighting tiles may be connected together, for example, in a two dimensional array, to form a larger lighting panel. Such lighting panels may generate a significant amount of heat, however, due to the large number of light emitting devices included therein and/or due to the operation of electronic driver circuitry included in the lighting panel. Heat generated by the lighting panel must be dissipated or else the lighting panel may overheat, potentially damaging the lighting panel and/or components thereof. In order to dissipate a large amount of heat, a lighting panel may be provided with heat sinks and/or other surfaces from which excess heat may be radiated. Such features may be undesirable for a lighting panel, however, since they may be bulky, heavy and/or expensive.